1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, a service cooperation method, and a storage medium.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, in an image processing apparatus, on a real time operating system (a real time OS), an execution environment directed toward another built-in system (an execution environment such as Java®) has been constructed. Owing to the execution environment directed toward the built-in system, an application for controlling the image processing apparatus can be installed from the exterior and loaded. The execution environment directed toward the built-in system enables a developer to develop the application for the image processing apparatus in a common development language and a common development environment. Further, the image processing apparatus has been made highly-functional and multifunctional and a wide variety of image processing apparatuses have also been developed for a scanning function and a printing function. In recent years, an image processing apparatus, which is loaded with not only basic functions such as computerization and printing of a paper document such as a scanning function and a printing function but also a network interface (network I/F), has been developed. An image processing apparatus, which is loaded with the network I/F, cooperates with an external system and an external service connected via a network, to provide various solutions. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2010-56770 discusses an image processing apparatus that cooperates with a document management system and can upload only scan data that matches a document management policy.
On the other hand, a use format of a computer based on the Internet, for example, a cloud computing environment has been paid attention to in recent years with respect to a network environment surrounding the image processing apparatus. In the cloud computing environment, a user uses computer processing as a service via a network. Particularly, various services are provided from a service providing apparatus, and the user can select the service according to his/her own use format such as utility form.
Therefore, even in the image processing apparatus, it is important to provide a solution for improving efficiency of user's work in cooperation with various services.
In the cloud computing environment, a provider of the providing apparatus that provides the services and a provider of the image processing apparatus are not necessarily associating in a cooperative framework. Accordingly, in the service providing apparatus, an interface for inquiring whether the image processing apparatus can use the services is not necessarily prepared. More specifically, in the conventional image processing apparatus, a user interface (UI), scan processing, and print processing are required to be mounted according to the services. If the number of services that cooperate with the image processing apparatus is increased, therefore, mounted codes become huger.